


The Discovery

by Pidge



Category: Animorphs - Katherine A. Applegate
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-16
Updated: 2014-02-16
Packaged: 2018-01-12 15:56:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 14,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1190982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pidge/pseuds/Pidge
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>David was just a normal kid. That ended once he walked through the construction site. (The Discovery told from David's point of view.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

My name is David.

And this is the story of how my life ended.

A week ago, I was a normal kid. I mean, my family moved around a lot but my parents loved me and I had my own little sanctuary in my room. No matter where we moved, my room was mine. It was the place I could be myself. Not David the new kid, or David the odd kid, or David the lonely kid. I was just David there. 

It had been a long day at the new school and I was taking the long way home to clear my head. Sometimes it was easier to start a school at the beginning of the year. It is easier to blend in. And if you are lucky, you can find the other new kids. New kids stuck together. But this school didn’t seem to have the requisite group of new kids. 

With this school, it would have been easier to transfer in the middle of the year. At least you are the spectacle then. Come see the Amazing-New-Kid, he can tell you stories of different places and make you seem more worldly! 

But at least you get noticed. 

Today was rough though. The initial interest had worn off so no one bothered to talk to me. One of my teachers even messed up my name. How does someone even mess up David?

So I was taking the long way home through this construction site. It looked like a graveyard of unfinished walls. Large beams were surrounded by muddy puddles. Even in the afternoon light, it was a little creepy and I made a mental note not to come here at night. Only a fool would do something like that.

I walked through the construction site slowly, kicking rocks out of my way, and shuffling my way through the maze. That is when I noticed something blue in the wall ahead of me. It almost seemed to glow. I carefully made my way over to the wall, if it could even be called a wall, and knelt down.

There it was. A blue box. And it was strange. I felt as if someone had placed it there. As if someone placed it there for me. Cautiously, I reached in, wrapped my hands around the box, and pulled it out. It came out easily. The box had some symbols on, some foreign writing, but nothing I recognized. And the strangest thing about the box, it was comforting. 

I glanced around to make sure someone wasn’t watching me. Then I slipped the box into my backpack and took off in a hurried walk towards my house. 

This day was getting better already, I thought with a grin.

The long walk had helped clear my mind. The discovery of the blue box didn’t hurt either. I was feeling better than I had in weeks. I unlocked the door to the house. My house, I reminded myself. It was my house for now. Until we moved again. I walked into the empty house, entering the security code, and made my way up to my bedroom. 

A cool breeze wafted in through my open window. It was too warm here. I missed the seasons. I would miss winter. If we even here for that long. My parents tried to keep in the same school for a year, but sometimes we had to move in the middle of the year. It wasn’t too bad though. Like I said, arriving at a school halfway through the year has its benefits. 

I tossed my backpack onto my bed and fell down next to my cat. Megadeth stretched his paws from the jolt of being woken up. I scratched his head and under his chin. Even if I hadn’t found that weird box, my mood would have been lifted just by coming home to Mega. He was always there for me. Sure, he was an apology gift from my parents, just like Spawn, my cobra, but that didn’t matter.

Megadeth stood and jumped off the bed. Probably off to find some food. I rolled over and unzipped the backpack.

Gently, I pulled out the blue box and stared at it. It was so strange. I would ask my dad if he had ever seen anything like it. I studied it for a few minutes longer before setting it back into my backpack. 

It was such a discovery.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, I was walking down the hallway of my new school. My dad worked late so I wasn’t able to show him the strange box. I wasn’t sure who I could show it to at the school. None of the teachers seemed to care, none of the students bothered to talk to me. Maybe a science teacher.

"Yo!"

I looked at the kid. He was short with dark hair and a sneaky set of eyes. He kept glancing around and moving like he couldn’t keep still.

"What?" I asked.

"Do… I don’t know you, do I?" the kid stammered out.

It didn’t seem like this would turn into a lasting friendship. But I would give him the benefit of the doubt. Somebody was better than nobody. “I’m new.”

"Ah," the kid said. He glanced around again. Did he need to leave or what? I shifted uncomfortably, not sure if I should leave when the kid spoke up again. "So. My name is Marco."

"I’m David."

"David! Okay. Good name."

At least the kid got it right. How does someone mess up David? That still bugged me from the day before. But I had to find someone who could help tell me what this box was. “Later.”

I turned to walk away. I didn’t know what to think of him. He seemed too hyper, too jumpy. 

"Hey, David!" the kid yelled at me. "What’s that blue thing?"

I turned around. That was a good question. But I didn’t have the answer. “I don’t know. I found it. It was in that construction site over across from the mall. In a hole in a wall. Inside the cement block. Like it had been put in there or something.”

"Yeah?"

He seemed interested. It was a good feeling to have someone interested. Maybe he could help me figure out what it was, “Yeah. It’s weird. I mean, it feels like it must be something, you know? Like it’s not just a plain old box. It has some writing on it. Like it might be foreign, or something.”

The bell rang and I glanced up, only to notice the kid jump like he had been shocked. Way too much caffeine for him. 

"Hey! Can I have it? I mean, it looks cool and all. I could pay you…"

What? 

I looked back at the kid to make sure I had heard him correctly. Sure enough, he was going through his pockets as if he was looking for money to pay me.

"I could pay you a dollar and thirty-two cents."

I looked down at his hand full of lint-covered coins, a dollar bill, and what seemed to be a Life Saver. This kid definitely wasn’t going to be able to help figure out what the strange box was. 

"Marco, huh?"

"Yeah. I’m Marco. Nice to meet you."

"Even nicer to say good-bye," I muttered and walked away from him. 

I didn’t need people like him in my life.


	3. Chapter 3

I left school a little early. The last class was pottery. What a joke. I was never going to need to know pottery in my life. 

When I got home, I tossed my backpack on the bed. Megadeath stretched and hopped down in that familiar ritual. I took the blue box out, glanced it over, and set it on my desk. I still had no clue what it was and I couldn’t find anyone who seemed to know.

The only person to talk to me today was that hyper kid. I wasn’t sure that was improvement over nobody. 

I pulled out my books, sat at my desk, and started on my homework. After a while, I noticed the sun going down and I sat back on my chair. 

My parents still weren’t home and my room was feeling too warm, even with the window propped open. Mega padded into the room and took his perch on the bed. I quickly switched into my swim shorts and walked downstairs. The first story was eerily silent.

Just me, I thought as I stood in the darkness for a moment before stepping outside. If there was one advantage to this new house, it was the pool. The pool was shaped like a kidney-bean. The underwater lights made the water glow softly. Almost like that box. 

I say on the edge with my legs dangling on the water for a few minutes before jumping all the way in. 

And I swam. I don’t even know how long. But swimming made the day disappear. 

Eventually, I had to get out of the pool. I dried off and headed back through the dark house. I turned the tv on, intent to come back once changed. I was heading towards the stairs, when I heard a loud crash from my room. 

Taking the stairs two at a time, I ran to my room and opened the door. The scene I came upon was pure chaos. A bald eagle and some other bird were flapping around wildly.

The bald eagle flew towards me and I put my arm up to block it. 

"Whoa!" I yelled in shock as the eagle deterred towards my bed and destroyed a pillow. 

In the madness, I noticed my broken window, glass shattered on the floor. The smaller bird hopped towards the desk and it reminded me. The BB gun was in there! I could use that to scare the birds away. I wasn’t even sure if Mega was okay.

I opened the drawer and pulled out the gun. I saw Mega hiding near the curtains and being careful not to aim towards him, I fired three quick shots towards the bird closest to me. It was holding onto the blue box. 

Was it trying to steal the box, I thought to myself. 

To answer me, the bird fell off the desk still gripping the box. Then the two birds took off down the hallway, the little one basically dragging the box along the floor.

It was stealing the box! 

"Oh no, you don’t!" I yelled. "Give me back that blue box!" 

I glanced at Mega, still hiding but he seemed to be fine, and took off after the birds.

"Give me back my box!" I yelled for no reason. These birds couldn’t understand me. And they already made it to the stairs. What was going on here?

I raised the gun and fired off some more pellets, hoping to scare the birds when the eagle started to open the sliding glass door. The little one looked a little less intimidating and still had my box so I ran for it. 

At that moment, the eagle slid the door open and both birds took off.

"Yeah! And don’t come back, either!" I yelled to no one and fired one last warning shot. I didn’t know what to think. I was in shock.

But if someone wanted the box that much, then it must be worth something. It didn’t seem safe to keep it with people using trained birds to steal it. I didn’t even know it what this stupid box was but it wasn’t worth getting hurt. But it was worth something and I was going to get that.

I shut the sliding glass door and locked it, taking another look outside. I didn’t see those birds anywhere. I grabbed the blue box, tucked it under my arm, and dashed up the stairs. I surveyed the damage - broken window, glass all over the floor, feathers from the torn pillow all around. Megadeth seemed fine, he had taken his spot back on the bed among the feathers. 

I quickly cleaned up the mess, putting a plastic sheet over the window, and tried to think of how to explain the broken window to my parents. 

Maybe I could use part of the money to fix it. It’s not like they would notice anytime soon.

With that finished, I sat down in front of the computer and posted some ads regarding the blue box. I glanced over at the blue box with its strange writing and faint glow. I’d be glad to get rid of this thing.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, I woke up and struggled to get out of bed. Another school day. Great. I could hear my dad downstairs but he would be gone by the time I went down there. 

I checked the computer, not expecting anything. To my surprise, I has received a response about the blue box. 

Someone wanted to buy it. Anytime. Anywhere.

This box was just full of surprises. 

This day may just be a good day after all.

I quickly set up a timed message to go out right before I got home. I didn’t want someone breaking into my house again. But I should have someone here with me when I meet with the buyer. Just in case.

I showered, dressed, and headed off to school. The first few classes seem to fly by. I was elated. Something was finally going right.

I headed off to the cafeteria and noticed the kid from yesterday in the lunch line. He was small but I bet he would watch my back for a cut of the money. I grabbed a tray of my own and walked up behind him, "You said your name is Marco, right?" 

He turned around with a jerk. Still jumpy. What was he on? 

"Yeah. Marco," he said. "David, right?"

I nodded. Marco. I was right. I glanced down at the mess in front of me and cringed, “The food was better at my last school.”

"That would pretty much have to be true. It couldn’t be any worse. Not unless your last school was a prison."

I was too distracted with my thoughts to focus. I looked at Marco. “I don’t have any friends here yet. Something really weird happened to me yesterday. Very weird. Want to hang?”

"Sure. So, what -"

"Cauliflower or green bean casserole?" the lunch lady asked him. "Come on, little Marco, let’s keep it moving."

"The casserole definitely. It sounds so French and all." Marco  
turned to me, “You know the English word for casserole? Slop.”

I wanted to sigh. This kid definitely tried a little too hard. But I guess I could understand. I used to try more to fit in but it just stopped seeming important when I would only be there for a short time. 

We got our food and walked through the crowded cafeteria to some empty tables. Marco sat down and I sat down across from him. I wasn’t even sure to begin. I wasn’t sure he would believe me. I almost didn’t believe it. I decided it was best just to jump right in. "Remember that blue box I showed you yesterday?"

Marco pursed his lips and looked up, like he was deep in thought. Everything this kid did was a joke to him. I started to have second thoughts when he interrupted them, “Yeah. Now I do, yeah.”

I leaned forward, lowering my voice a little bit. “Last night someone tried to steal it. And you’ll never guess how they did it. Trained birds.”

I braced for a laugh but instead Marco just said, ”Say what?”

"Two birds flew in my bedroom window and tried to get away with the box. Fortunately my cat, Megadeth, went after one." I started to explain.

"You named your cat Megadeth?"

"I just wish my snake had been out of his box. He’s had his venom taken out, but I bet it would have scared those birds."

"Snake?"

"Yeah, he’s really cool. He’s a cobra. You’re not even supposed to be able to own them, but my dad got it for me. He goes overseas a lot. He’s a spy. But don’t tell anyone.” 

I wasn’t sure if I could trust the kid. So I decided to let that slip just in case he decided to try and rip me off. 

"Ooookay." Marco said. 

"Look, I know it sounds weird and all, but those birds were not ordinary birds. One of them opened a sliding glass door. It was an eagle, I think."

"Why would anyone want to steal that blue box?"

I shook my head. I still had no answers to what the box was and I certainly didn’t have any answers to why someone would want it. “I don’t know. But it must be valuable, right? Or else why would someone go to all the trouble of using trained birds?”

"Makes sense." Marco nodded. 

"Anyway, I bet it’s worth a lot of money, so I’m going to try and sell it."

"Sell it?"

"Yeah. I posted a ‘for sale’ notice on a couple Web pages last night  
after all this went down. I described it. And I described those symbols, the ones that look like foreign writing? This morning before school I checked, and there was already an answer. Some guy says he wants to see it. He says he’ll pay good money. Says he’ll go anywhere, anytime.”

"You did what?"

"I’m thinking I should have some backup, you know? Someone to cover me, in case anything goes down. You’re the only guy I know here." 

"You didn’t give this guy your address, did you?"

I smiled. “I’m not a moron. The guy could just rip me off while I’m stuck here at school.” I shook my head and looked at Marco. “I set  
it up on a timer so the E-mail with my address won’t go out till right before I get home.”

"It’s on automatic?"

I nodded, smiling inside at being clever. “I send the E-mail, the guy comes over, and I give you ten percent for helping me out.”

"Good plan," Marco agreed.

"It will be good for both of us." I leaned back and smiled. This kid could be a friend. At least while I was here. People tend to lose touch after you move away. "I have to fix the broken window but between that and your portion, I should still have quite a bit left. I’m not sure what to do with it. I wonder if I could convince my dad to go on a road trip."

Marco seemed to nod.

"My dad gets so busy with his job so I don’t get to spend much time with him. It would be great to just take a long road trip, just the two of us. I mean, my mom is cool but I just want it to be my dad and me."

I noticed Marco’s eyes start to glaze over from me talking too much. It was the unfortunate part to being lonely. Any sign of friend caused my mouth to take over my brain. Luckily, the bell rang and saved me from becoming more of a fool.

"Later, man, I will see you after school," I said to Marco as I got uo to leave. And thanks for everything, I added silently.

This was going to be a good day.


	5. Chapter 5

The rest of the day went by quickly. It was the small blessing about this school - the classes were so mindless, one could easily space out. This whole place was such a joke. Why would anyone with a brain want to come here?

I had told Marco to meet me at my place after school so I decided to skip out on the last class and make sure everything was okay. It was another warm sunny day. I missed the tell-tale signs of fall arriving. The chill in the air, the leaves turning colors, the rain washing away the staleness.

I shook my heard as I got to the front door and opened it. I turned to enter the security code but the alarm wasn’t armed.  _That’s strange_ , I thought to myself and walked hesitantly towards my room.

I heard my dad’s voice which brought simultaneous relief and guilt.   
Relief that it wasn’t someone or some animals breaking in. Again. And guilt that I was going to be in so much trouble. Maybe I could say I was feeling sick.

I stepped into my doorway, preparing my excuse, when I saw my dad with his gun drawn. He was pointing it at blue, black, furry blob the size of a large dog and getting larger.  “Whoa!”

My dad said with his usual tense voice, “He says he’s some kind of alien.” 

"Whoa-oah-oah!" 

"By the way, you’re grounded."

Those words didn’t even matter. My excuse no longer mattered. The fact that my dad hadn’t seemed to notice the missing window didn’t matter. I couldn’t believe my eyes, “An alien, noway!”

<Yes, way!> A voice sounded in my head. I glanced around. Was the alien speaking telepathically? How cool! But the excitement quickly wore off when the alien continued, <Listen to me. All hell is about to break loose. The two of you need to hide.>

"Hide? Why do we have to hide?" I questioned the alien.

Between the events of the past couple of days, I was getting very worried to what could happen. I could take on some more trained birds. But aliens? And that was when the alien confirmed my fears. <Because the alternative is to be dead.>

The doorbell rang. I spun my head towards the stairs as my dad kept his gun focused on what the blob had turned into - it looked like a strange blue centaur. 

<You don’t want to answer that doorbell.> The alien ‘said’ cryptically. 

It was at that moment that Spawn, or another Spawn, slithered out from the closet. My dad’s head snapped back and forth between the other Spawn, the one that had been out before, and to the alien, and to the other Spawn again.

<Yes, it’s me, the snake talking. Look, don’t do anything stupid.>

With that, my dad shot the other snake. One bullet hit it towards the end of its body. My dad aimed carefully, his brow creased in focus, and the alien swung its tail. It was so fast, I almost didn’t even see what happened. 

But the gun flew. Along with a finger. Blood spurted out.

""Hey!" I yelled just as my father bellowed out in pain and anger.

CRRRRASH!

A loud noise came from downstairs but my mind didn’t even seem to process that. I ran over to my dad as he clutched his hand, trying to stop the bleeding. 

The house seemed to shake and two large monsters came into the room. Then, through my door, stepped another blue centaur alien. I glanced between the two.

<Visser Three!> the first alien yelled. Or it seemed to be yelling. It was hard to explain the telepathic speak.

<We heard shots. We thought maybe we could help.> The second alien said, his ‘voice’ was full of darkness. 

 "Get out of here!" I yelled, trying to position myself in front of my injured father.

<Get out of here?> The second alien asked. <Why, I’m disappointed. I just got your primitive E-mail and I rushed right over.>

"You want to buy the blue box?" I stammered. What had I gotten myself into?

<Oh, yes, definitely, l do, I do. And I’m willing to pay anything. Let’s see, what could I offer you for the box? I know!> He whipped his tail past me. The cold air from the movement seemed to hit my own cheek. The alien pressed the blade against my dad’s throat. <I’ll pay you with your father’s life.>

I couldn’t speak. My thoughts were racing in my head. What have I done? My dad already was injured and now he might be killed. Because of me. Because of my stupidity. Because of me wanting to spend time with him.  _I guess I’m spending time with him now,_ my mind stupidly answered my own panicked thoughts.

<You aren’t getting the box,> the smaller blue centaur stepped forward, his tail with that killing blade gently raised. 

<Then this human will be separated from his head. I understand that’s  
usually fatal in humans.>

Everything seemed to be frozen in that moment. Except my mind. It was racing with thoughts and outcomes. My dad dead. Me dead. 

<What is this? Another Andalite in morph?> The evil alien said and moved one of his weird antenna-but-not-eyes to look down at Spawn.  _No,_ I cried silently _, not Spawn._

My dad regained his senses long enough to jerk his head back, getting out of the striking distance of that blade. I took the distraction as an opportunity to get him out of danger. I ran forward and yelled, “Let him go!”

I barely noticed as the two aliens attacked each other. I barely noticed the two bladed monsters jump into the battle. I was focused on saving my snake. And my dad. I glanced back at him. He was out of danger. For now. 

My dad had retrieved his gun and carefully aimed at one of the bladed monsters. He fired three shots. The monster fell. 

I saw Spawn near him as more of the bladed monsters crashed into my bedroom. I crouched down to get out of their line of sight. I guess I didn’t have to worry about the broken window anymore.

It was chaos!

Then it got worse. 

A load roar filled the room. It seemed to vibrate the floor. I looked up and saw a grizzly bear. A grizzly bear, reared up and scraping the ceiling! I stared at with wide-eyed shock and shook my head. It couldn’t be real. 

And then a tiger slid into the room and jumped into the battle. I heard the sounds of it all around me. I noticed, in the back of my head, I could feel the breeze. 

There was yelling inside my head. I wasn’t even sure if it was the alien or if it was me.

Crash! 

Something was thrown through my window. I glanced back to see part of the wall go with it.  _I am never going to be able to fix the window now._

I had to find Spawn. He was going to be killed in this mess. I spotted him, heading toward one of the blue centaurs. I grabbed him and cried out, “Look out, Spawn!”

<You idiot, put me down!> Spawn, no, not Spawn, one of the aliens yelled. 

I threw him down and jumped back, landing hard on my butt. It wasn’t Spawn. I had to get out of there. I looked around for my dad and saw him in the bathroom. I crawled my way through the bodies and feet, dead and alive, and the battle raging just inches above me, and dashed into the bathroom with him.

My dad had grabbed one of the towels and wrapped it around his bleeding hand. He still had his gun, held awkwardly in the other hand, but his eyes glanced back and forth between the different beasts in my room. Including a monstrous purple creature turning from the older blue alien. It was huge and full of teeth and spikes. It was death.

<It’s called a Dule Fansa,> it said. <A rather fanciful name, don’t you  
think? Would you like to see what it can do?>

I crawled into the bathtub, next to my dad. He wrapped the arm with his bleeding hand around me protectively, as the purple monster shot a hole into the one remaining wall. 

<Now, let’s make this simple. l want the blue box. I will have the blue box. Or all of you will die.>

The box? 

<David,> one of the voices from before said my name. <David, listen to me.>

How did it know my name? I looked around, not sure which one was even “talking” to me. 

<David, listen to me. I’m on your side. We have to rescue that box. So we have to know where it is.>

<Brave Andalites.> The other alien said loudly. <You’ll let me kill these humans rather than give up the box?>

I can give up the box. I can save me and my dad. The box was nothing.

"No!" I yelled. "I have the stupid box. Just let us go. I have the stupid box right here in my backpack, if you want it so bad."

I started to swing my backpack around. I hadn’t even noticed I still had it on through all of the chaos.

In seconds, the bladed monsters leapt towards me. My father fired. There was a scream in my head. From who? 

I looked at my dad with wild eyes. I wanted to say something. Anything. But my mind wasn’t working. I just stared at him. My brave dad still fighting as much as he could. My dad still protecting me, his only son, from things we had never imagined. I wanted to say sorry. I wanted to tell him I love him.

When I looked back towards the battle, I saw the grizzly bear on all fours running right towards me. I ducked into the bathtub as much as I could and closed my eyes shut. 

I felt the impact. And then the world went dark.

When the world returned, there were six kids in skintight athletic clothing standing in front of me. One was a tall, brunette kid that I vaguely recalled seeing at school, “Who are you?”

I looked around and briefly noticed Marco.

The tall kid sighed, “We’re the people who are going to totally change your world, David.”


	6. Chapter 6

"They are called Yeerks," Jake, the tall brunette, said.

We were in a barn, full of animals in cages, and I sat on a bale of hay. I rubbed my jaw. If I had a mirror, I could probably see the beginnings of a bruise. The other kids all stood around me.

"They are a parasitic race from another planet. They are not much more than gray slugs, really. But they enter your brain and reduce you to slavery. Those big, seven-foot-tall creatures that were in your house? Those are Hork-Bajir. They have Yeerks in their brains. An entire species already enslaved by the Yeerks.”

"And now they’re after the human race," One of the girls said. Cassie, if I remembered correctly. There were too many names at once. "There are thousands of humans who’ve been made into Controllers. That’s what you call a creature who’s controlled by a Yeerk."

"My brother is one," Jake said.

"And by now, David, so are your mother and your father," Marco butted in. Cassie gave him an angry look but Marco shrugged it off. "He needs to know what’s happening. He needs to know this isn’t just some game."

"What about my mom and dad?" I asked Marco. He was the only one out of the group that I knew at all. And I didn’t even know his last name.

"Look, it’s all about that blue box you found. The Yeerks want it. The guy who turned into the big purple pile driver? That’s Visser Three. He’s the leader of the Yeerks here on Earth. He’s running the invasion, okay? As you may have noticed, he wants the box. And he allowed your father, and your mom, too, I guess, to see the truth. To see him. And that’s a no-no. The Yeerks don’t want people knowing what’s happening, not yet. So he’s going to keep your mom and dad quiet. Plus, he’s going to find out what they know about the box.”

"Are you saying he’ll torture them or something?" I shook my head at that image. I didn’t want to think that I was responsible for my parents being hurt. I found that stupid blue box and now my parents were gone. It was my fault.

Marco muttered something and walked closer to me. He stood in front of me and I looked up at him, being shorter than him for once by sitting on the hay bale. 

“Listen to me. By now your parents have been taken to a secret, underground facility called a Yeerk pool. It’s not a nice place. Picture a sludgy cesspool of a pond the color of molten lead. There are two steel piers leading out over the pond. Hork-Bajir warriors will drag your parents out to the end of one of those piers. They will -“

"Marco!" Cassie yelled at him.

But he continued without even noticing her, “They will drag them out to the end of that pier and they will kick their legs out from under them and force their heads down into the sludge. And while they are kicking and screaming and calling for help, a Yeerk slug will swim over and it will squeeze into one ear. And it will flatten itself out and squeeze and burrow and dig its way into their skulls, where it will spread around and into their brains. And the Hork-Bajir will yank them up out of the sludge, and they will start to feel that they cannot control their own arms or legs. Cannot open their own mouths or move their own eyes.”

The image was terrible. I just stared at Marco with wide eyes. I couldn’t breathe. I could feel tears burning at my eyes. I did this. I did this to my parents.

Marco wouldn’t stop. I wanted to scream at him. I wanted to yell. But my own voice had been caught in my throat. My head started to swim a little. He just wouldn’t stop talking. 

"The Yeerk will open their memories like a person opening a book. They will be slaves. The most total slaves in all of history because even their own minds won’t be theirs anymore. Are you getting the picture?"

He finally stopped and turned away from me. I wanted to cry but I didn’t want to let them see me cry. I didn’t want anyone to know how terrible I felt. This was all my fault.

"My mom is one," Marco said after a moment. "She’s a Controller."

"There’s a lot to tell you, David," Jake said quietly. "But Marco’s right. You need to know this isn’t a game. This is life and death. This is the future of the whole human race. It’s too late to help your parents. And as of now, you have no home and you can’t go back to school. You do, they’ll find you. And it’ll be you taking that long walk down the steel pier.”

This couldn’t be real. The tears quickly stopped and my sadness and guilt were replaced with anger. And hatred. I looked around at the kids. They were just kids. Like me. There is no way this was real. It had to be some prank that Marco decided to pull. I said, “This is stupid. I mean… it’s not right. Can’t be. This is all some kind of trick.”

"You saw what went down at your house," The tall blonde girl said. She hadn’t spoken much yet. Rachel. That was it.

But I turned my glare on her. This was just a joke. “That could have been guys dressed up in costumes.”

"You saw Visser Three morph," Cassie argued.

"What’s a Kisser Three?" I asked. What did it matter? It wasn’t real. It couldn’t be real.

"Visser Three. With a ‘v,"’ Jake said. "The one who looked like a deer with a scorpion tail. You saw him morph into that purple pile-driver monster.”

I looked down and whispered. “It’s all a trick.”

"Ax," Jake said. "Demorph."

"I would be glad to. It is very disturbing being without my tail. Diss-ter-BING."

"David, watch Ax. Watch him closely."

I looked up at the Ax kid. Hooves began to grow on his feet. His arms became thinner and weaker. Extra fingers emerged on his hands. His lips were sealed together, and then faded to the color of the surrounding skin, and finally disappeared altogether. What seemed to be legs started to grow out of his chest.

"Aaaahhh! Aaaahhh!" I yelled. I jumped back, stumbled, and started to run. 

Rachel grabbed me. 

“It’s okay, you’ll get used to it,” she said. She turned me around and pushed me back toward the hay bale. I sat down, staring at the monstrosity in front of me. 

My mind searched for a way this could be fake. Unfortunately, nothing came. 

There was a disgusting sound as a tail appeared. That tail with the killing blade. He fell forward on all fours. Then, with a popping noise, the weird antenna-but-not-antenna things grew from his head and eyes appeared on the ends.

"See?" Jake said. "No trick. This is Aximili-Esgarrouth-lsthill. We call him ‘Ax’ for short. He’s an Andalite. The Andalites are the good guys of the galaxy.”

Marco muttered something again. I couldn’t focus enough to catch what he had said.

"Visser Three, who you saw in your room, has an Andalite body. But he’s a Yeerk underneath it all. He has just stolen and enslaved an Andalite."

I felt myself shaking. I couldn’t think. I didn’t know what to think. My mind was racing as I looked between each of them. Jake stood tall but looked distant. Marco was still partly turned away from me. Ax, the alien, was furthest away. I couldn’t read him. Rachel was still close from pushing me back, her arms crossed and her eyes angry. Cassie just looked sad.

"There is one nice thing about all this," Cassie said. "There is a compensation for all the danger and all the fear.”

I just stared at her. What could make up for me losing my parents? My home? My life?

"You know the wild animals who were fighting the Yeerks today? You know the birds who tried to steal the blue box before that?" Marco said. "Us. That was us. See, Visser Three and Ax aren’t the only ones who can morph. So can we. And now that we have this," He lifted up the blue box, "so can you."

"Any animal you can touch, you can become," Cassie said. "A dolphin, a skunk, a wolf.”

"An elephant or a grizzly bear," Rachel said.

"A gorilla. A shark," Marco said.

"A tiger, a fly, a cockroach," Jake said. "Any animal. Any size. But only for two hours at a time. You can never stay in morph for more than two hours.”

"Why?" I asked.

"Meet the final member of the Animorphs," Marco said. "David, my man, meet Tobias."


	7. Chapter 7

I spent the night at Marco’s house. He let me have the bed but I couldn’t sleep. I wanted to fall asleep and have this whole day be some nightmare. I wanted to wake up in my own bed with Mega sleeping next to me. Oh god, what happened to Mega and Spawn? Why am I thinking about my pets when my parents are becoming slaves?

I didn’t even get to say anything to them. I didn’t get to tell them that I didn’t mind moving so much. That it was okay they worked so much.

I just wanted them back.

I got out of the bed, careful not to wake Marco on the air mattress, and tiptoed into the hallway. I had to say something to them. I picked up the phone in the hallway and started to dial when a finger slammed down.

Marco whispered, “Ever heard of Caller ID?”

"I’m calling my mom and dad," I said with determination. I had to call them.

Marco nodded. “Okay. But not from here.”

We got dressed and crept down the stairs and outside. The air finally felt like fall. It had that chill to it. It seemed like it might even rain. I looked up at the sky and felt like crying again.

"Come on," Marco said.

"Where are we going?"

"You want to call home, fine. We’ll call. But from a pay phone. And then we’ll see what happens."

I followed Marco down the dark streets. We went through a gate and ended up at a 7-Eleven. There was a pay phone there near the parking lot.

"Okay, now listen up. We do this my way. You can call. Tell your parents you’re all right. Don’t tell them who you’re with. Don’t tell them where you are. Got it?"

I nodded. I wasn’t an idiot and I was getting tired of Marco treating me like I was. I just wanted my family back. If his mom was really a Controller, why couldn’t he understand that?

I tossed a quarter in and started to dial when Marco grabbed my arm. I was getting tired of people grabbing me as well. ”Before you do that, let me tell you exactly what’s going to happen. Your mom and dad will sound totally normal. They’ll tell you to come home. If you refuse, they’ll ask where you are. Ask them what happened today at the house. Just that.”

I finished dialing. ”Hello? Dad? It’s me. It’s me.”

"David, I’m so glad you called. Where are you? Are you okay?"

"No, I’m not okay, I’m scared."

"There’s nothing to be scared about."

I noticed Marco mouthing the words “ask him.”

"Dad, what happened? I mean, those were aliens and all."

"No, not at all. It was just a trick. Some guys from my work wanted to see if they could fool me. Man, they got me good."  
I looked at Marco. I could feel my face fall. I am sure every single thought was written on my face. “It was all a trick? It was guys from your work playing a trick?”

How did he think I would fall for that?

Marco rolled his eyes. I wanted to nod in agreement but I was too angry. At my dad. At Marco. At all of them.

"Dad, I saw that, one alien turn into something else. That was real."

"No, it was some new technology at work. Joe wanted to test it out. But are you okay, David? Where are you? Let me come get you."

"I’m okay, I’m-"

Marco slammed his finger down on the hook. I turned and looked at him, the anger at my dad and at him boiling over. "What are you doing?"

He grabbed my sleeve. “Come on. That’s time enough.”

I shook him off. I just wanted everyone to stop pulling me places. “Step off, Marco, you don’t tell me what to do.”

"Listen, you idiot, in about two minutes a couple carloads of Yeerks are going to come screaming up looking for you. They’ll trace the call."

"My dad wouldn’t do that."

"No? Come with me. We can watch. We can see what happens."

We went across the street to some old buildings with deep, dark overhangs. We slid into the shadows and watched as barely moment later, two jeeps pulled up in the parking lot. A limousine followed.

"See?" Marco gloated.

"That doesn’t prove anything," I whispered. It was just my dad worried about me, I lied to myself. I had to hold onto that or I would fall apart.

Another car came squealing up. My mom and dad jumped out. They joined the others. My dad began passing out photographs. Of me.

"Your picture," Marco said, unnecessarily.

"They’re guys from my dad’s work," I said. "Other spies, like him."

"What exactly does your dad do for a living?"

"He works for the National Security Agency. So, see, he would be able to trace the call, and he’d have his work buds with him. He’s just looking for me, that’s all." I said, trying to convince myself more than Marco.

The group spread out and looked about. My dad and two other men came down the sidewalk near us. Their footsteps seemed so loud in their quiet night. My dad’s voice seemed even louder. "If we don’t find that kid, Visser Three will make us wish we were dead,"

It was over. I just wanted it to be over. This was my fault. My mind felt like it was spinning again. The world seemed to go grey and I fell against the wall. I didn’t want to believe it. But there was no denying it anymore.

"He’s coming this way," I said, my voice cracking. "He’ll see us."

<No, he won’t,> Marco said.

My dad and the other two came closer.

And then there was a sound like a train. Something large. I glanced out of the shadows. My dad and the others turned to see a rhinoceros running down the sidewalk. Right towards them. My dad was able to jump out of the way. 

One of the guys did not. The rhino hit him with a sickening sound. The man flew up and spun through the air before landing on the cement.

<That would be Jake. He and the others have been taking turns watching my house in case there was any trouble. They followed us.>

My dad turned, drew his gun, and aimed for the rhino. Jake. Marco stepped out of the shadows. Marco as a gorilla. I slid down the wall, further into the shadow. Marco grabbed my dad and tossed him against the wall.

_No,_ I mouthed silently. My dad hit the wall and fell to the sidewalk. I looked at my dad. The man who taught me everything I knew. The man who wanted to turn me over to an alien. The man who tucked me in when I was little. The man who would kill me with no hesitation. The man who helped me pick out Mega at the pound. 

"It’s a trap!" I heard someone yell. But it sounded so far away.

<Seen enough?> Marco asked me.

But I couldn’t answer. 


	8. Chapter 8

The next day, we gathered in the woods. The sky was full of clouds and the air was chilly. It was the fall weather I wanted. I wanted to laugh at it all. I wanted to cry. Or scream. Or yell.

I barely slept. Dreams of my dad and mom being locked up. Tortured. Dreams of them crying and screaming. Dreams of them asking why don’t I save them.

 More so, being tossed around, I started to realize that it was really over. As I knew it, my life was over.

The group of them carried a large, divided cage with poles as handles. There were two large birds. I couldn’t even focus and just walked alongside the group, kicking my feet at the damp grass.

Four days ago, I was a normal kid, walking through a construction site. I was a typical only child. I was the new kid. I was a little lonely but mostly happy. I had my parents. And I let them down.

I was weak. 

My thoughts were interrupted by a hawk swooping down and landing on the log. <What are you doing with that?>

"Relax, relax, Tobias," Cassie said, setting down the cage.

 <You’re not releasing him near my territory.>

"Tobias, this bird has only been at the center for a couple of days. He has a well-established territory well back in the mountains. You know golden eagles don’t like roosting in trees if they can find a nice cliff. So he won’t be hanging around. But we can’t get him any closer to his territory, really, because the road back up there washed out.”   

"David’s here to acquire his first morph. The merlin." Jake said.

I perked up at my name. ”Which one’s the merlin?”

"The smaller bird," Cassie said. "They’re very fast, very agile."

"Faster than the big one?" I asked.

<You don’t want to be a golden eagle. They’re jerks. They go after other birds. Not to mention anything from a rabbit to a small deer. And I’m not kidding about the deer. I saw a golden eagle take down a young doe. Sank those talons right into the back of her head, boom, she went down like she’d been shot.>

"I want to do the eagle," I said. I wasn’t going to be weak again. 

There was a pause. “Any special reason?” Jake asked.

"Yeah. You tell me I have no home. No family. Now I’m supposed to be in the middle of some war with aliens. If I’m in a war, I want to kick butt."

Jake nodded. “It isn’t always about sheer power. That golden eagle is as big as a bald eagle, and we have problems sometimes with Rachel being a bald eagle because of the size.”

"That bird has a seven-foot wingspan," Cassie pointed out.

I nodded and looked down at the leaves and grass underfoot. I needed to be strong. I didn’t want anyone controlling me - Yeerk or Animorph. “Did Jake here tell you all what animals to morph? Or did you pick them yourselves?”

"I’m not telling you what animal to morph."  

"Okay, then I’ll morph the eagle," I insisted. I was tired of being pushed and pulled.

"Here’s an idea," Marco said. "How about not being such a jerk? We saved you from the Yeerks. We’ve been doing this for awhile, all right? We know what we’re talking about. And Jake is the leader of this little group, so how about if you show some respect?"

"Who are you, my father?" I hissed. "You don’t tell me what to do. No one tells me what to do. As for saving me, hah! That’s a joke. You wanted the blue box, and now you have it, and you know what I have? Nothing. That’s what I have, nothing. So thanks."

I knew I sounded like a jerk. But I didn’t care at that moment. I was beyond tired. I just wanted crawl under some blankets and never come out.

"Look, kid -" Rachel began.

"You guys all think you’re so tough and so cool," I said. "All these battles you’ve been in and all. But now, here I am, the new guy - as usual for me - and you don’t like me."

"No one doesn’t like you," Cassie said.  

I turned to look at Marco. “He doesn’t. I’m not an idiot, you know. I can tell what people think about me. My family moves every couple of years whenever my dad gets transferred. I’m always the new kid in school. So I’ve gotten good at telling what people think of me. And now, here I am in this different school. And I’m the new kid.” I shrugged. “So, look, maybe you like me, maybe you don’t like me. I don’t care. I’m here. If you use the blue box on me I’m one of you. But I’m not going to get pushed around. And I’m not going to be all, ‘Oh, thank you, wise and wonderful Animorphs, for letting me join.’ If I’m in, I’m in all the way. If not… I guess I’ll walk away and try to figure out what to do. On my own.”

It was a big speech for me. I was used to staying in the background. But my life had just changed completely and I had to be strong. Weak-David had let his parents get taken. Strong-David was going to get them back.

Rachel laughed out loud. “Oh, he’ll fit in fine.” 

Jake looked at the hawk. “Where’s Ax?”

<Can’t you hear him? You people are so deaf. He’s galloping, should appear right about… there.>

The blue centaur, the Andalite, came into view. I stared a little too long. I wasn’t sure how I would get used to all of this. <l am sorry to be late. l had to go out of my way to avoid some human campers. Are we going ahead with the Escafil Device?>

Jake hesitated before saying, “Yes.”

He didn’t want me here. That hesitation was too familiar. It was the hesitation when one of the group invites you to a party but the others don’t want you there. 

Rachel had the blue box in a waist pouch. She unzipped the pouch, grabbed the box, and tossed it to the alien. He missed the catch, but with lightning speed, he whipped his tail forward, turned the blade flat, and caught the box. He raised the box to his hands. It was very impressive. And a scary reminder to how dangerous that blade was. Like when it cut off my dad’s finger.

<Press your hand on the square nearest to you.>

"Wait! Shouldn’t there be some kind of ceremony or something?" Cassie said.

"Like what?" Marco asked. "You want us all to join hands and sing The Star-Spangled Banner’?"

"No, I don’t know all the words," Cassie said. With a grin, she added, "We could sing ‘MMM-Bop.’"

We all laughed. It was the first time I laughed in so long. It felt so good.

The alien held out the cube in one weird many-fingered hand. I stepped forward, keeping an eye on that blade. I pressed his hand down on the cube.

I felt that strange warmth like when I found it. It also seemed to be full of static electricity like a plasma globe. “It tingles.”

Marco walked up to me and stuck out his hand. I took it as he said, "Welcome to the Animorphs, new boy."

They all shook my hand. It was awkward. Then Cassie opened the cage of the golden eagle.

"You just put your hand in very slowly," she instructed. 

I moved my hand towards the bird. My hand was shaking.

"Now press your palm against the bird’s shoulder."

I did. 

"Focus your mind. See the eagle in your imagination. Think about him, what he is, what he represents."

I closed my eyes and focused. It was an amazing animal. Strong, vicious, powerful. It was everything I needed. It relied on no one. It survived.

"Now take your hand away," Cassie said softly. "You now have the golden eagle inside you. His DNA is in your blood. You can become him."

I grinned. “When do I do it?”

"Soon," Jake said. "We also have to get you a morph with some teeth. Cassie? Take David to the zoo. With your access he should be able to get in and out without being spotted, but the rest of us will fly cover. Let him have whatever morph he wants. But also get him a bug or two in case he has to get small. We want to be ready," he said, switching back to me. "We have a little… situation. A mission."

Already? Np, it was too soon. I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t be-

I tried to stop my thoughts. But I didn’t know how. I focused on the eagle’s strength since I couldn’t count on my own. It seemed to calm the panic in my mind. It was soon but I could handle it. I couldn’t let anyone else down.

"Nothing to worry about, though," Marco said. "Just the usual: Save the world from the alien invaders. You’ll get used to it." 


	9. Chapter 9

 

There seemed to be no time to catch my breath or slow my thoughts.

We were in the barn again, surrounded by weak, fragile animals, as the others mostly discussed their plan.

"I have the brochure. I downloaded it off the Internet." Rachel said as she held out some color printer pages showing the Marriott resort. It was a typical marketing brochure. Beautiful rooms, happy people, celebrations. Lies.

There was a map of the resort. It showed a big, main hotel building that was twenty stories high. And down, closer to the beach, ten private cottages.

"They’ll be in the cottages," Marco said. "The leaders, I mean. They’ll dump all their people in the main hotel building."

"Sounds right," Jake agreed.

"They’ll have security so tight no one will be able to burp without nine guys in sunglasses running over with their Uzis cocked and ready." Marco rambled on.  "French security, German security, Japanese security -"

"Ninjas?" I joked.  _I can do this_ , I told myself.  _I can try to fit in. I don’t have to be the outsider here._

"Yeah, Jackie Chan himself," Marco said, rolling his eyes.

"He’s Chinese, not Japanese," I said, rolling my eyes back at him. So much for not being the outsider. No matter what I did, it didn’t seem to be good enough for Marco or the others. 

"British security. And no one say, ‘Bond, James Bond,’ please." Marco continued and I cringed at the shot. "Russian security and American secret service, FBI, and local cops."

Jake sighed and shook his head.

"Now just to make things really fun," Marco continued, "there are the Yeerks. How many of the hotel’s maids and waiters and pool boys are Controllers? Don’t know. How many of the Russian, German, British, French, Japanese, and U.S. security guys are also Controllers? Don’t know. All we know is that one of these presidents or prime ministers is a Controller."

I looked down at the hay on the floor and moved it around with my shoe. I noticed my shoe had a little spot of blood on it. I stared at it.

Dad.

"At least one," Cassie said, shaking me out of my fog. I tried to focus. "Sorry to interrupt, but it’s kind of important. Erek said one of them was a Controller. He didn’t say for sure that the other five were not."

Wait. Dad! 

"Can I say something?" I asked, carefully. 

"Sure," Rachel said. "As long as it isn’t more bad news."

"It kind of is. My dad is part of the National Security Agency. What they do is electronic surveillance. You know, like bugging phones and watching people from satellites in orbit? Well, it just seems to me the Yeerks can do all those things plus a lot more. So probably the entire Marriott resort is being watched by the Yeerks.”

Finally, I was able contribute to their team. It was good information. Maybe they would stop looking at me like I was just a problem to solve.

"I’m pretty sure I said, ‘No more bad news,’" Rachel grumbled. "Oh, man."

"We have no choice," Jake said. "Do we?"

<lf the Yeerks get to the President and these other guys, we might as well give up,> the hawk said. <Six powerful world leaders, all Controllers? I mean, those six people are just slightly more powerful than the seven of us.>

"All that security," Jake said. "That’s a lot of ways to get shot." 

"Yeah," Rachel agreed. "Let’s do it."

I looked at her and felt a wave of jealousy wash over. I wanted to be brave. I wanted to be strong. I wanted to be able to jump into this. Like her. Like the others. 

Jake interrupted my thoughts, “You ready?”

No. Not at all. I wanted to go home. I wanted my parents. I felt like a little kid lost in the dark. Except the monsters were real and my parents were now the monsters. 

I looked at each of them. I was surrounded by strangers. I was filled with fear and regret. Most of all, I was filled with mind-numbing panic. Everyone gets some type of training. I didn’t know what to do. I wasn’t prepared.

I wasn’t ready at all.

But I managed to nod in response.

"Okay," Jake said. "This should be a nice, safe, easy trip down the coast. We’re just spying the situation out. You’ll need the eagle morph, but not the other morph you acquired at the zoo."

"Still, the morphing will be very creepy," Cassie warned. "So be prepared. What you do is just concentrate. Focus on the eagle."

I nodded and focused on the eagle. I focused on the eagle’s strength. For a few moments, nothing seemed to be happening.

"It’s going to be weird," Rachel warned.

My skin started to change colors. It was darkening to a rusty-colored brown. I stared at my hands, afraid to even move them. I had no idea what to expect. How does someone even turn into an animal?

"It won’t hurt," Marco said. His voice sounded so far off. 

Lines appeared on my flesh. The eagle’s flesh. It looked like feathers. For one second, I thought it was beautiful. But in that second, I started to shrink. The world fell away from me. I looked up at the others in a panic and cried out, “What’s happening?!

"You’re getting smaller," Cassie said softly. "It’s part of the process.  
Now the lines on your skin will deepen and go three-dimensional. You may feel itching.”

"Ahhh!" I yelped. The outlines of feathers became actual feathers. It wasn’t painful, just annoying, like a bee buzzing around that you want to swat away. I was watching myself turn into a bird and I still didn’t believe it.

My arms shot out, lengthening, and the bones appeared out of the flesh. White and thin and so fragile looking. I couldn’t help but scream at the sight. I had never even broken a bone and now I was staring at them.

"Eeeewww!" Rachel said. "Now that’s gross."

"Ride through it," Cassie said. "Just stay with it. Look! See? The flesh and feathers are covering the bones now." 

Within seconds, the flesh and feathers followed the bones and covered them. I could feel myself shaking. What did I get myself into?

_Except you didn’t get yourself into this,_ my mind answered back.

"Don’t sweat it," Marco said. "Wait till you morph a fly. You want to  
see disgusting? That’s disgusting. This is nothing.”

"I don’t want to -" I started to say, but then my mouth bulged out. I could no longer speak. There was another moment of panic when I realized that fact. My lips stretched into a vicious beak shape and my teeth seemed to melt into my lips, hardening them. My tongue reshaped itself. 

I was becoming less and less human. I was almost the golden eagle. A fighter. A killer. A survivor. 

My clothes still hung around my body. The eagle’s body. My wings stretched out, further and further. I felt trapped with these rags around me. I wanted to fly. 

I heard voices. It all seemed so far away as if I was down a deep hole. 

I heard a familiar voice. A sweet voice. I tried to focus on it but it was like swimming through a marsh. I couldn’t make it all the way so I struggled to grasp the words I could.

"-you can’t talk-" Cassie’s voice drifted in and out. "But - thought-speak. Just think - you want - or Marco - at once. Form the words - mind - we’ll hear them."

I turned my head to Cassie’s voice. I understood most of what she said. 

I strained to form the words and sent it to the others. <Can you hear this?>

"Yes." Cassie said. It was easier to focus on her for a moment. "See? It’s easy. But now comes the really tricky part, because the eagle’s brain, its basic instincts will kick in and -" 

Then I started to drown in my own mind. It didn’t feel like my mind anymore. I felt my head snap left and I focused on the hawk. It was clearer than anything had been. 

I flapped, still encumbered by my clothing, and aimed towards the hawk. 

It was in my territory! It was the enemy!

Then there was weight on me. I flapped wildly to get it off. Danger! Fight!

There was a pesky voice in my head. The hawk flew up to the rafters. I struggled to get towards the hawk. I need to protect myself. 

Then the sweet voice came back. “David, David! Think, now. Focus. Your name is David. You’re human. Get a grip.”

I struggled. The eagle in me struggled. But slowly, I was able to pull myself out of the darkness. Out of the marsh. 

My name is David. My name is David. I repeated it in my head like a mantra. My name is David.

I looked around with the eagle’s eyes. It was overwhelming in itself but I tried to look at the others. Finally I was able to speak. <That was weird. It was like I was myself, only suddenly there was someone else in my head, too.>

<You will become accustomed to it,>  the alien, Ax, said. <When I morph a human I often experience the human mind and human instincts. The need for food, for example. >

"Yeah, don’t get between Ax and a cinnamon bun," Marco said. 

"You want to try to fly?" Jake asked me.

<How do I do it?> I asked.

"Well, first, wait for us all to morph. Then trust the eagle. He knows how to fly," Cassie said.

Cassie quickly helped me out of my clothes. She was comfortable around the animals. The others all morphed. I looked away and focused on some hay on the ground while it happened. My mind was still reeling from seeing myself morph. I didn’t need that experience so soon.

Within minutes, we left the barn.

It was strange. I didn’t know how to fly but I did. I had to flap hard to get some altitude. But soon enough, I was up in the sky. I only had air around me. I was flying!

<I’m flying!> I couldn’t help but yell to the others. 

Time meant nothing up here. It was complete and utter freedom. Freedom from responsibilities. Freedom from pain. Freedom from the world. Up here, I was the eagle. I was strong up here.

We flew past trees and houses and buildings. We flew past parts of the town I hadn’t even discovered yet. We flew until we reached the coastline. It all seemed so small and insignificant from here. 

But even though it was so far away, I could see everything. I was a superhero.

<This is so excellent!> I yelled. <l can see everything! I can see little crabs all the way down there on the beach! I mean, whoa!>

There was nothing that could stop me. I spread my wings further and the warm air lifted straight up. It was effortless. <Look! Look! Look at this!>

<Yeah, yeah, it’s cool,> Marco, the closest one to me, muttered. <But I’m trying to think here.>

I grinned inside. He just wasn’t having any fun. I folded in my wings and followed the air current, shooting past Marco. How could he not be ecstatic right now? 

<Yah-haaaah!> I cheered. This was the best feeling ever.

Then a feeling of guilt washed over me. I was enjoying this while my parents were suffering. What kind of person did that make me? I tried to shake those thoughts from my head.  _Stay strong,_ I ordered myself,  _stay strong like the eagle._

<Yeeee-haaaaahh!> I yelled, more to myself. More to convince myself that I was the eagle. <I’m doing it!>

I let my mind wander away from those dark thoughts. I didn’t want to think anymore. I let the eagle take over. I was the eagle. 

And I saw my prey. The crow was close. Too close. It should have known better. I was the eagle, it was just a crow. I was the eagle, I was the predator, I was the strong one. 

I partially closed my wings and shot down toward my prey. Down.

I raked my talons forward and silently hit the the crow’s neck, crushing bone and piercing flesh. The prey was mine. I was the-

No! I let go of the crow. I was a kid!

_My name is David,_  I screamed from the back of my mind and forced myself back into focus. I watched the crow tumble down. It was dead. It was dead because of me. 

I caught the breeze, spread my wings wide, and flew upwards. The crow just continued to spiral down. 

<What are you doing?!> Jake roared.

<Um…> 

I was the eagle. No, I was David. I was…

<Um…> 

I was a predator. I was a murderer. What was I?

<I guess this eagle’s brain kind of took over for a minute»

I allowed the eagle to take over. I wanted to be the eagle. I wanted to be free.

<l can’t believe I just did that! That poor bird! I just lost control.> I stammered out. 

It was true. But it was also a lie. I hadn’t lost control. I had given up control. I wanted to be free from the guilt and anger and sadness. And now there was just another reason to feel guilty. I killed the crow.

_No,_ I tried to convince myself,  _the eagle killed the crow._

It was easy enough to lie to the others. But it wasn’t as easy to lie to myself.

Even with Cassie’s comforting words trying to break through, I just kept thinking of how I killed the crow. I felt the life disappear from an animal because of me. I felt sick. I felt like crying again. But worst of all, I felt excitement.

<Hey, look! There’s a helicopter coming up behind us. Marine Corps helicopter. It’s… whoa! That must be Marine One!>

I looked at the helicopters as they continued their conversation. This thought-speak was so strong. I couldn’t tell who was talking most of the time. I struggled to follow their words.

<Marine what?> Rachel, I think, asked.

<You know, Air Force One, the President’s jet? Marine One is the President’s helicopter.>

<The stuff you know, Tobias.>

The helicopter was coming towards the hotel. A second helicopter was a mile back from the first. One of the helicopters was a decoy. 

<Oh, man! We’ve seen that before!> 

<What’s the matter?> I asked. I looked around, trying to notice what they had. The air behind the helicopter seemed to blur a little. It was subtle. 

<Yeerk stealth technology,> Ax explained. <Human eyes would never notice. Human radar won’t spot it. But these eyes are very good. And Yeerk technology is, well, it’s not exactly Andalite technology.>

<So what is it?> I asked again. I started to feel the panic rise up in my chest. Why did I say I was ready for this? I had no clue. It felt like coming to a school halfway through the year and trying to catch up. All of the other kids knew what was going on and I was looking around like an idiot.

It was the dream when there is a test but you hadn’t studied. 

<Yeerk spacecraft. Shielded,> Marco said. <One coming right up behind the President’s helicopter. They aren’t going to wait for the conference. The Yeerks are going after him right now!>

<Move! Move! Move!> Jake yelled.

We all flapped our wings like mad. We were rushing to reach the helicopter. I kept glancing to the others to make sure I was doing the right thing. The situation was tense and the other kept mostly silent. 

The blur moved closer, up behind and above the helicopter. We were closing in but we were still spread out from each other from trying not to get noticed. Jake and I were closest. I had tried to stay next to him as much as possible. Marco wasn’t too far behind me with Cassie and Ax.

All of a sudden, a narrow rectangle appeared out of nowhere. If I had been human, I would have just stopped. Luckily, the eagle’s mind was not scared like I was. The rectangle slowly opened wider. 

<The Blade ship is opening its belly hatch,> Ax said.

Blade Ship? What? But I didn’t want to keep asking questions and slowing them down. 

The hatch opened completely, revealing the inside of the ship. I had no clue what to think. It wasn’t like any helicopter or plane I had been on. I could see some of the bladed monsters like from my room. Hork-Bajir, the others had told me. And then there were these disgusting centipede-like creatures, full of slime and teeth. 

We continued to race towards the ship and the helicopter. I was exhausted but I couldn’t let the others know that. I had to prove myself. 

Suddenly, the helicopter’s rotors slowed. The engine roar died out.

<They have it!> Ax yelled. <Force field is on. It killed the engines. They will probably have stunned the humans on board.>

The helicopter was almost directly above us now.

<Aim for those pylons!> Jake yelled. 

There were two pylons sticking out from the sides of the landing wheels. Jake soared up and I immediately followed him. I was completely focused on him. I had to be or otherwise, I would panic and fail.

<The other chopper’s going to see that this one has disappeared,> someone yelled. There was so much noise in my head! <Even humans aren’t that blind!>

At that moment, a light seemed to glow around the helicopter. Then the light separated, becoming an identical helicopter, and falling behind. I marveled at the technology for a second. 

<A hologram,> Ax said. 

The real helicopter rose into the hatch. Inside that Blade ship. The hologram of the helicopter took its place, flying as if nothing had happened. It was amazing. And it was frightening. I begun to realize how dangerous the Yeerks were. 

Jake soared, flipped in midair, extended his talons, and caught an edge of one of the pylons. It was quite the maneuver. I simply grabbed one of the struts and held on for dear life. 

The hatch started to close. I glanced down at the others, flapping, struggling to make it. I turned and looked at Jake. What do we do, I wanted to ask, what can we do?

I turned back to the hatch to see one bird fly through. Then another. The opening was closing quickly. It was barely six inches when one last bird made it through. The last bird twisted, swooped under the helicopter, and landed on the deck.

<Yes!> Marco yelled. His was one of the few thought-speak voices I was able to distinguish all the time. 

I don’t know why he was so happy. 

A part of me wished I was stuck out there. Instead of trapped inside here.


	10. Chapter 10

I had made it through the hatch. Somehow. So had Jake, Marco, Cassie, and Ax. 

The helicopter sat low to the desk in a shallow depression. By some stroke of luck, we were almost completely hidden from sight.

<Demorph,> Jake said. <This is going to get nasty. Be ready for a fight.>

The others demorphed easily. I hesitated. I wasn’t even close to prepared. This was supposed to be a quick look around. I didn’t even know how to morph clothing at all. All of my clothes were back in the barn. A part of my mind scolded myself for even worrying about all of that while we were moments are from being discovered and killed. 

Within minutes, we were lying beneath the President’s helicopter. I was trying not to scream out loud. It was easier to hold in my emotions as the eagle and I wished I could return to that form. 

"Ax," Jake whispered. "We need a distraction."

I glanced between everyone with panicked eyes.

<Yes, Prince Jake, I think that would be a good idea.>

"David," Marco whispered to me. We were just inches away from each other. ”Did Cassie set you up with a bug morph?”

I stared at him for a few moments, not comprehending what he meant, and then it clicked. "She made me touch… I mean, acquire… a cockroach. Is that what you mean?"

"Jake!" Marco said. "He has a cockroach morph. What do you think?"

I couldn’t see Jake from my vantage point so I just looked at Marco. I tried to ignore everything else. The monsters not too far away. The cold, dirty metal against my skin. The threat of death looming so closely.

"Okay, dude," Marco turned back to me. "We’re morphing roaches. Just focus down hard, shut your eyes, and don’t think about it."

Don’t think about it. That was good advice. Don’t think about turning into a cockroach. Don’t think about being naked. Don’t think about being dead.

Marco’s skin started to change color. Hairs seemed to sprout up from his arms. My eyes widened at the sight. I was not ready for this at all. 

"Close your eyes," Marco said.

I did. I started to focus on the cockroach. I didn’t like turning into something that seemed so weak. With my eyes closed, my thoughts started to race. It was the horror before my eyes or the horror in my mind. So I opened my eyes again.

I was shrinking. It felt like I was falling towards the dirty deck. I felt an itchiness from my back. I glanced at Marco as he shrank before my eyes. He was already smaller than me when his skin hardened and completed its change to a disgusting yellow-brown. 

I felt a pressure in my neck and arms. I was still shrinking It seemed like it would never stop. I looked at my own body. But it no longer seemed like my body. My arms were segmented. I could glance at what seemed to be wings on my back. 

I turned back to Marco just as two long, hairy legs shot out of his sides. My eyes went wide. Wider. His face elongated and two antennas slurped out. I opened my mouth. I didn’t know if I was going to puke or scream. What looked to be pinchers formed from where his mouth had been. The mouthparts were moving quickly like some nightmare come to life. His eyes turned into the dark compound eyes and stared at me. 

And that was when I let out a mix between a moan and a scream. It was my nightmares realized. It was like watching someone die. I couldn’t handle it. 

All of those panicked thoughts I had been holding back burst through and escaped. "Ahhhh! Ahhhh! Ahhh!"

<Shut up, you moron!> Marco yelled.

No! No! I can’t! I can’t turn into that! 

<David, calm down, it’s okay,> Cassie said. 

Her voice calmed me a little but I couldn’t stop screaming. The dam had broken and I couldn’t stop the fear flooding through.

<We need to get outta here!> Jake said. <David. DAVID! Listen to me. Get a grip. Do it now. You can be hysterical some other time.>

I can’t be weak. I managed to stop screaming. Barely. I had to get out of this morph. It was disgusting. I felt my bare skin start to return. 

I am human.

<David,> Cassie said. <Listen to me. You are going to die if you don’t get a grip. Finish morphing the cockroach. It’s the only way.>

<No way!> I cried out. I can’t do it!

<Do it, David,> she said. <l know it’s creepy, but it’s better than being dead. Besides, we’ve all done it. Marco has done it. He’s not screaming like a baby, is he? Aren’t you as tough as Marco?>

I looked at the insect that had been Marco. He was the one who got me into this mess! 

<You know what Marco did the first time he morphed a roach?> Cassie continued. <Just what you’re doing. He freaked. But he maintained. It’s okay that you freaked. But you have to maintain now.>

I nodded and focused on the cockroach. I slowly morphed, again staring at Marco, but pushing aside that fear and panic. I focused on a much stronger emotion. I focused on my anger. This was going to get me through. 

All of the guilt I felt was turned to anger. All of my sadness, my worries, my regrets. All of it funneled into my anger. My anger towards Marco and the mess he caused. 

<lf he can do it, I can do it,> I said. If he can do it, I can do it. 

<When you’ve kicked half the Yeerk butt I’ve kicked, then you can talk, New-boy.> Marco snapped.

Every single kid who ignored me. All of the teachers who didn’t even bother to learn my name. Every school I had to leave with no goodbyes. The rotating houses and rooms over the years. Marco represented it all.

I was just the new kid to him. I always would be. But I would show him. 

<Motor on outta here!> Jake yelled. 

I barely noticed the change in light. That was foolish of me. I had been too focused on my thoughts. 

I ran. And I ran!

Flying was one thing. There was a sense of freedom there. It was peaceful.

This was chaos. I was careening around on my little cockroach legs, trying to follow the others. It was like being in a speeding car. The tiny strange world seemed to blur. 

<Step on them! Crush them!>

No! I wasn’t going to die this way.

A foot came down near me and turned with amazing agility. It had been close but I made it out of the way. 

<Opening up ahead here!> Jake yelled.

I followed the roach in front of me disappear into an opening that didn’t seem large enough. It was just a seam into steel. I hesitated for only a moment and hurried into the suffocating space. 

We continued forward.

<Light ahead,> Ax noted.

We went for the light. The noises overhead were deafening though. I couldn’t make sense of any of it. Between that and trying to focus on the thought-speak, my brain felt like it might explode. 

<See, isn’t this fun, David?> Marco joked. <Ah, yes, life as an Animorph. It’s not a job. It’s an adventure!>

The light became brighter and the pounding noise disappeared into the distance. My mind was able to clear a little, only to pick up a new sound.  

HSSSSSSSSSS.

<What’s that sound?> I asked, worried. 

<RAID!> Marco screamed. <They’re gassing us!>

<The light!> Ax yelled. <Go to the light!>

<lf that gas reaches us we’ll not only go to the light, we’ll be saying “hello” to all our dead relatives and explaining our impure thoughts to Saint Peter!> Marco yelled.

<What?> Ax asked.

<Just RUUUUUN!>

Everything exploded into motion. We ran. We ran away from the gas. We ran towards the light. We didn’t know where the light led. But it was better than the alternative. 

A pole appeared, heading into the light. A roach in front of me ran up it. I jumped, caught the pole, and followed. Into the light.

<Yeeeee-haaahhh!> Marco screamed as he made it into the light. He was the last one. <Rachel is going to be so mad she missed this.>

It was so bright in this room. I was having trouble making sense of the images. The human in me seemed to be fighting the roach’s brain. I didn’t want to lose control. I didn’t want to disappear down some crack. 

<Slash-shoe man!> Marco said. 

<Who?> Cassie asked.

<The President of the United States!> Marco said. <I’ve always wanted to meet him. But somehow I wasn’t imagining this particular scene. I thought we’d shake hands. And I figured I’d have hands.>

There was a sound of something closer. 

<Something with four legs,> Ax said.

I felt out of it. I had no clue what I was doing. 

But I couldn’t let Marco see that. I couldn’t flip out again. 

<Hide!> Jake said.

<Where?> I wondered. 

<Up his leg!> Cassie cried.

We climbed the leg of the President. It was like climbing a mountain. We traversed over the shoe and the sock until we reached a convenient spot under the wool pants, amongst the leg hairs. 

<We’re out of time. Insects were discovered beneath the helicopter. The Andalite bandits in morph? Or just insects? Either way, no time left. I’ll acquire him now.>

I panicked for a moment. Why could I hear him? Could he hear me?

I felt movement. I didn’t know if I should thought-speak. What if I made a mistake and he, Visser Three, could hear me? But I didn’t know what was going on. I couldn’t make sense of anything that was happening. 

I focused on the others only. I pushed the image of Visser Three out of my mind. I pushed the image of him holding his blade to my dad’s throat out. <Now what?> 

<Good question,> Cassie muttered.

We didn’t seem to be going far.

<They’re putting him back on the helicopter.> Ax said. <l believe they intend to return the helicopter to its original flight plan, replacing the hologram. They’ll reverse the stun effect and all the humans on board will wake up, remembering nothing. It will be as if nothing happened.>

<l agree,> Jake said.

<Do we stay with the hairy leg here, or do we bail and maybe do some damage here on the Blade ship?> Marco asked.

<Bail,> Jake said. <We can’t just demorph in the President’s helicopter. The President won’t be alone. And even if he’s straight, others may not be. There could be a shoot-out.>

Was he trying to protect me? I had already wimped out once on this mission. I had to let him know I could do it. I could fight.

<So?> I said, trying so hard to sound braver than I felt. <l thought we were supposed to kick butt?> 

<Not on our own President, duh,> Marco said.

I felt defeated. That had been a mistake. I reminded myself to stay in the background.  _Don’t beat yourself up,_ I told myself. 

We bailed, back down the hairy leg, across the sock, down the back of the shoe to drop onto the steel deck.

<Back where we started from,> Cassie remarked. <Under the helicopter.>

Wait!

Back where we started was the hatch. The hatch that was about to open to release the helicopter. 

<Uh-oh,> Marco said, just as the hatch started to open.

A bright line of daylight appeared and the wind rushed through it. I didn’t even have time to process what was happening. The wind picked me up and threw me around before pulling me down through the crack. 

I flew past the steel. I flew past another roach. I was trapped in a tornado of escaping air. I was tumbling over and over. 

It can’t end like this! 

I can’t die like this!


End file.
